jimmyjam Posted May 3, 2016 Just wondering if anyone has tried using cane mulch in place of chopped straw following the laundry basket or bag technique shown in 'let's grow mushrooms' videos? If so how'd it turn out? 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jdon Posted May 3, 2016 I've been successfully using sugar cane mulch to grow whites in bags for about 18 months now. In summer the odd bag gets mold or those little gnats, but otherwise no issue. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jimmyjam Posted May 3, 2016 Good to hear, I was worried it might compact too much not being hollow like straw. Seems a lot easier than having to chop a bale of straw up I'll give it a go. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
drpotato Posted May 4, 2016 I too was interested about this, cane mulch is really cheap here, given its sugar cane country and all, it literally costs more to buy the cheapest bag of dirt, and im always seeing myc growing out of them so i knew something would take to it. Just wasnt completely sure until now if it would. Man i really gotta get them started Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jdon Posted May 4, 2016 Meant to attach a pic of results - these were grown on pasteurized cane mulch in a garbage bag. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jimmyjam Posted May 4, 2016 Meant to attach a pic of results - these were grown on pasteurized cane mulch in a garbage bag. Looks great. Was the bag kept upright like that the whole time? What was your initial substrate of choice? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jdon Posted May 4, 2016 Thanks! The initial spawn uses wheat berries. Bags are kept horizontal in a lidded plastic tub (cheap way to keep bugs out and moisture in...) until most of the air holes have white showing thru, then put upright in one of those cheap $30 mini greenhouses. I like to think the black plastic excludes light and helps keep the bag contents absorb warmth (often good in tas) though these claims are not evidence based. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BedOSpines Posted May 4, 2016 they look great. just plane old sugar cane mulch, nothing more? got some king oysters i wanna try this with. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jdon Posted May 4, 2016 they look great. just plane old sugar cane mulch, nothing more? got some king oysters i wanna try this with. Yep, I do use it for Kings too, but have found yields are much better with some kind of supplement like lucerne. I don't supplement for the whites though, no. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
drpotato Posted May 6, 2016 how long does a bag like that end up fruiting for? like, does it ever end? or is it just exhaustive until either the water or nutrients expire Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jdon Posted May 6, 2016 how long does a bag like that end up fruiting for? like, does it ever end? or is it just exhaustive until either the water or nutrients expire Don't have a good answer, sorry. After 2 awesome flushes I was over white oysters and cleared it out of the greenhouse to make room for a king oyster garbage bag which was ready to pop. It makes great mulch though and occasionally throws up a few little fruits after rain. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jdon Posted May 6, 2016 After 2 awesome flushes I was over white oysters ...temporarily at least! The edit post function doesn't seem to work... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theuserformallyknownasd00d Posted May 6, 2016 (edited) how long does a bag like that end up fruiting for? like, does it ever end? or is it just exhaustive until either the water or nutrients expire to answer your question sorta... If you used 1kg dry straw and your grow setup was reasonable, you might get anywhere from 500g-1kg fruits. That's what I was getting with sugar cane bagasse using way more wheat/WBS spawn than I needed. nice work Jdon! Edited May 6, 2016 by theuserformallyknownasd00d 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites